Shooting trial witness admits 'I'm a criminal' but scoffs at suggestion he did shooting

The Crown’s key witness in a gangland shooting trial admitted Thursday that he had lied numerous times while giving evidence but laughed at a defence suggestion that he and not the man he is accusing was the shooter.

The Crown’s key witness in a gangland shooting trial admitted Thursday that he had lied numerous times while giving evidence but laughed at a defence suggestion that he and not the man he is accusing was the shooter.

The 28-year-old man was testifying against Nicholas Kim, 29, his former friend and alleged partner in crime. He alleges Kim shot another man in the leg at a sports field near Lees Avenue two years ago.

The accuser’s identity is protected by a publication ban imposed by Justice Robert Wadden for the man’s own safety.

Before the trial resumed Thursday, Wadden heard a private application from the prosecution after which he banned the public from the courtroom because of “security concerns.” It remains unclear what the “concerns” were.

During cross-examination by Kim’s lawyer Solomon Friedman, the accuser admitted to omitting key details in a statement to police and lying to the court in previous testimony.

When he last testified, he told the court the shooting came as a shock to him and that Kim had told him he had received $10,000 for the hit.

He admitted Thursday that he knew the shooting was going to happen ahead of time.

Friedman asked the accuser why he hadn’t warned the victim that Kim was planning to shoot him.

“We are gangsters,” he said. “A guy’s getting shot — it’s normal in our lives. I made money with him (Kim), not with (the victim).”

“You’re proud of your criminal lifestyle,” replied Friedman.

“Hey, I worked on it a long time,” responded the accuser.

The accuser has a long criminal record dating back to his early teens, including theft, robbery, assault, weapons possession and 24 breaches of court orders.

He had difficulty recalling details of many of his past crimes and said he was unable to remember the names of people he had assaulted.

“I’ve been charged so many times,” he said.

Friedman is alleging that the accuser has concocted the story of Kim’s alleged crime because Kim was on the verge of persuading the accuser’s girlfriend to report him for physical abuse.

The accuser agreed the girlfriend had sought refuge with Kim and Kim’s girlfriend but denied his decision to report his former friend was motivated by a desire to avoid a prosecution that would likely have landed him back in jail.

“They were manipulating her and putting things in her mind that didn’t happen,” he said. “He pulled snake s—, I pulled bigger snake s—.”

He did, however, admit to Friedman that he had physically abused the woman who is now his fiancée.

He described an incident that happened after the girlfriend had left him for three months, leaving him without money and unable to pay his rent.

“I beat the s— out of her,” he said of her return. “I was mad. I’m a criminal. I do things like that sometimes.”

Pressed by Friedman to estimate how many times he had fired a gun in the commission of crime, the accuser said “five to 10 times” but said he was a poor shot.

“I’m pretty sure I never hit anyone,” he said. “I would have heard it through the grapevine.”

None of the accuser’s admissions during testimony can be used against him.

But he said Friedman’s accusation that he and not Kim had shot the victim was untrue and made no sense.

Reporting the shooting for police had cost him his reputation, income, lifestyle and most of his friends,” he said.

“I finished a good, profitable career to put a crime on him that I did? Is that what you’re saying?”